Posts

The Record Shop Nashville is honored to be mentioned in the latest issue of Mix Magazine, which features many our recent studio sessions!  Read what they had to say here!Blurb about The Record Shop in Mix Magazine.

 

 

Over the years, I’ve worked with a slew of musicians and producers in more studios than I can remember. I don’t care how talented you are, how creative your vision is, or how much money you have to spend on your project – if you’re working with people who don’t care as much as you do, you will not be satisfied with the final result.

Gio cares about what he does, and it shows. We’ve worked together on several projects at The Record Shop, and I never doubt how great it’s going to turn out. It’s rare to find people who humbly listen to the artist, and interject their ideas without minimizing or discounting the person’s artistry.

My latest project, an EP we’re completing, is no doubt the closest to my heart. The songs are quirky, frank, and by far, the closest glimpse of my insides you’re gonna get without being a mind reader. The only person I’d trust with them was Gio. Not just because I like him as a person (and we both rep Detroit, yep yep), but because I knew he’d “get it”. I don’t believe in genres and I don’t believe that popular music has to be ‘Cookie Cutter’ pop. (Once the EP is released you’ll get why that last sentence is super clever and funny.)

Anyway, we started with me very simply singing the songs with just piano, and I explained the direction I wanted to go in. He instinctively found the perfect players, and wisely knew how to shape the songs to make sense commercially, while keeping the unorthodox sound I wanted.

During one session, before laying down vocals on a pretty dark track, I had this sudden, primal need to scream at the top of my lungs… I guess to put myself in the state of mind I was in when I wrote the song. I went into a little booth by myself and screamed like a maniac – pretty sure everyone in the room thinking I was crazy. Not funny crazy – crazy, crazy.

Well, Gio told me to do it again, skillfully placed it in the intro, and it turned out being the dopest, most perfect way to set up the song. That ability to sense exactly when it’s fitting to leap outside of the box is what has made this project so special and so much fun.

Love & gratitude to The Record Shop & Gio!

Tish Lyndsey

tishlyndsey.com

We had the great pleasure of working with Taylor Guitars to produce a series of videos covering their new product line and all of the amazing performances that took place on the Taylor Stage at NAMM 2013. Check it out!!!!

Taylor Guitars NAMM 2013

We recently came across this alarming article regarding the future of digital performance royalties. Producers and artists in all levels of the industry should take notice of this developing situation. Let’s do our part to put a stop to the diminishing value of our intellectual property.

The Recording Academy- “It has come to our attention that satellite broadcaster Sirius/XM is seeking to bypass the standard system of paying royalties.  If they are allowed to do so, it will likely result in substantially reduced payments to artists and producers, a lowering of the value of performance royalties, and unnecessary conflict between artists and their labels.

What’s the issue:

Currently, satellite radio pays sound recording performance royalties to the nonprofit collective SoundExchange, which in turn pays 50% to the artists on the recording and 50% to the copyright owner (usually a record label).  SoundExchange pays the artists the full 50%, even if the artist has unrecouped royalty balances, and also pays producers their share as directed by the artist.  The system has resulted in an important new income stream for creators.

Sirius is now seeking to use the option of direct licensing with certain independent labels instead of using the system created by Congress that ensures fair payment to all parties.  Artists should be concerned about direct licensing; 100% of the royalties would be paid to the record label which in turn may pay artists at a lower rate, subject to recoupment.  And labels should be concerned as well; the lower rate being offered could have the effect of lowering the value of performance royalties to all parties.

What you can do:

If you are an artist signed to the independent label…

You can call your label today and request that it not direct license your recordings.  In the interest of fairness and transparency, your label should continue to license through SoundExchange.

If you own or manage an independent label…

It is in your interest to refrain from direct licensing.  While Sirius may be offering positive terms, the long-term effect of accepting a rate lower than the compulsory rate could be to reduce rates overall in the future.  Creating downward pressure on the value of music may be good for Sirius/XM, but it’s bad for artists and labels.  Please see the following statement from the American Association of Independent Music: https://a2im.org/2011/08/09/statutory-rates-versus-direct-licenses-for-digital-music-streaming/

The Record Shop is starting a new music industry interview series next month called “For The Record”, with our friends at The Funky Umbrella. The show will feature interviews with many of Nashville’s leaders in the industry. Each episode will feature a viewer question from our friends on Facebook. If your question is chosen you will receive a free day of studio time at The Record Shop. Tell us what you would like to know from:

Orville Almon: Entertainment Lawyer
Pat McMakin: Director of Operations at Ocean Way
Bob Bullock: Mixing Engineer
Anastasia Brown: Music Supervisor
Charlie Pennachio: Artist Development

https://www.facebook.com/nashvillerecordingstudio

Welcome back to behind the gear at The Record Shop. Are you ready to roocccck!?!?!? (cue stadium of screaming fans) This week we take a look at the Purple Audio MC77. The MC77 is a superior recreation of the legendary URIE 1176 Peak Limiter. This piece of gear bleeds rock and roll. If it was magically transformed into a person it would make Slash look like Yanni. From Drums to guitars to vocals, this thing will give you clarity, punch, and attitude for days. Let’s start by giving you a quick back story on the MC77’s estranged father, the URIE 1176.

The 1176 was designed by audio legend, Bill Putnum in 1967. Bill was a revolutionary in the audio world. He is noted to have been the first cat to use artificial reverb, double a vocal recording, and develop a multi-band equalizer. So it is no surprise that he was also the dude that created what is arguably the most commonly used limiter in modern recording. The 1176 became the first true peak limiter with solid state circuitry. It was popular for its super fast attack time, resulting in a signature tone that can be heard on countless records.

In 1997, a new audio company called Purple Audio released their first product, the MC76 (If you paid attention in roman numeral class you’ll get it). Designed by Andrew Roberts, the MC76 looked like an 1176 that Barney got a hold of in the restroom, and it sounded like one that hung out with Jose Canseco (if your not hip to baseball or the news, he did a lot of steroids). It had all the vibe of a vintage 1176 without the price tag, and it quickly became a highly sought after piece of gear. The MC77 is an update of the original with a few extra features.

Aside from the paint job, the MC77 really stands out in the crowd. It has the sonic characteristics of the classic, vintage 1176 with an improved high frequency response and added grit. We’ve used it on just about everything when we are looking for something to give a track some attitude. If we want to add some punch to drums, smooth out guitars, round out a bass, or put some rock in a vocal, the MC77 delivers every time.

We have one trick in particular that produces some really unique results. But in order to explain clearly, let’s start with a story. At some point back in the day, there was an audio engineer who spent way to much time playing with the gear in the studio. One day he said, “Hey, I wonder what would happen if I pressed down all of the ratio buttons on this limiter at the same time?” Once he had all four of the ratio buttons locked in place, he cranked the input and the rest is history. There are a few different names for this trick; all buttons in, nuke, British mode; but the result is a super compression that has been used to create some really unique sounds. I’m a big fan of smashing the drum room mics with this setting. The setting creates a lag in the attack time, resulting in extra punch, and a drastic compression slope, resulting in a quick drop in level. As this push and pull repeats with each transient hit we can achieve a rhythmic pumping of compression that breathes with the track and amplifies the “room sound”. Listen to any modern rock record and your bound to find this effect in play.

And that concludes this evenings presentation. Check back next week for our next installment of “Behind The Gear at The Record Shop”, where we take a look at another colorful device, the CL1B tube compressor. In the meantime, feel free to drop by our Gear Page for more information on our vast array of equipment.

As always, we love to hear feedback on our articles. If this was helpful, or a complete waste of your time, let us know! We love making new friends as well. Feel free to drop by our page on Facebook and sign up for our monthly newsletter to receive valuable resources and updates on the studio. Thanks for dropping by For The Record. Catch you next week!

-Giovanni

Therecordshopnashville.com

Funky

A little over a year ago I was out catching a set with one of our artists. I noticed a guy with a camera darting back and forth across the front of the stage in what looked like gymnastics maneuvers, but what was most likely his valiant efforts to catch the best shot he could in the crowded venue.

We were looking for a new addition to our video production team so I asked the club owner if he knew the guy. He said, “Oh ya, that’s Kaz, he’s here all time. He films all of the bands and offers them a great deal on the footage after their set.” I thought, “What a great concept. This is the type of dedicated, big picture work ethic that we’re looking for.” Of course before I was able to grab his attention, I got sidetracked with some friends, and we were headed to the next venue.

I was disappointed that I didn’t have a chance to chat with him. From what I could tell, this Kaz character was the hardest working videographer in Nashville. However, the disappointment was short lived. Sure enough, the next night I ran into him at a different venue. Or maybe it was his clone. I swear the dude is everywhere.

As our video department expanded we brought Kevin on for a few gigs and he nailed the project every time. He was always ready to work, but if he was ever tied up with another gig, Kevin would make some calls and have a crew ready for us right away.

So you can imagine that I was floored when he told me about his involvement in a new multimedia company called The Funky Umbrella. It is essentially a team of Kazanaters that have an unwavering dedication to their work and a genuine support of their clients. Could it be true? Did I finally find our match made in heaven? The Funky Record Umbrella Shop? While the name is a work in progress, I’m blessed to have the pleasure of working with these guys.

The Funky Umbrella is a unique media company that offers a wide variety of services under…….. (wait for it) one umbrella. They provide video, photography, web design, branding, and much more. But this ain’t the “one man, one stop shop” you’re used to. The Funky Umbrella has an amazing team of professionals, each with a specific skill set, working collectively to offer a comprehensive package of services for everyone from musicians to executives. (After reading that I realize I sound like I could be narrating their latest commercial, but what the hell, these guys are great!) But I’ll get off the soapbox and let you see for yourself.

Check out Thefunkyumbrella.com

The Funky Umbrella has teamed up with The Record Shop to handle the production of Balcony TV as well as our live video shoots and artist press kits.

We are stoked to be providing audio recording and mixing for The Funky Umbrella’s productions as well.

I am very excited about this new partnership (can you tell?) and look forward to continue offering our friends valuable resources in the development of their projects. Among our recent work, The Funky Umbrella and The Record Shop have teamed up with Lightning 100 to produce a video compilation of the Live On The Green Concert Series featuring Will Hoge, Los Lonely Boys, Edwin McCain, Ten out of Tenn, Here Come The Mummies, Brett Dennen, and many more. You can catch the videos here…. Don’t forget to check out The Funky Umbrella on  Facebook to see their latest work and viral resources!

Catch you next time

-Giovanni

The Record Shop

therecordshop1 (@) gmail . com

“Wow! Look at all those knobs.” As an audio engineer that is probably the most common phrase I hear uttered by an artist the first time they step foot in a studio. In an effort to figure out what all these fancy buttons do ;) , we thought it would be fun to introduce a new series on For The Record called “Behind The Gear.” The Record Shop is home to a unique collection of modern and vintage equipment. Our audio arsenal was carefully selected to offer a wide range of sonic colors and textures. Each week we will offer an inside look at a different piece of equipment we use here at The Record Shop. We will take a look at the history of the piece,  outline the various ways it is utilized during a session and share some unique tricks that we use to shape the tone of a recording.

This week, we’ll start the series off by offering some basic information on each category we will be covering: Microphones, Pre-Amps,  Compressors, Equalizers, and Plug-Ins. For those of you familiar with the basic function of these devices, we invite you to join us next week when we take a look at the Empirical Labs Distressor, a studio legend that reigns as one of the most versitle compressor/limiters on the market. For the rest of you fine folks, read on my friends…….

Microphone

If your reading this, I’m sure you don’t need a proper definition of what these things do, but for the sake of covering our bases, we’ll turn to Wikipedia. “A microphone is an acoustic-to-electric transducer that converts sound into an electrical signal.” Sounds simple enough, but what makes our job so fun is that each microphone does this differently and, in turn produces drastically different results. There are three different categories of microphones that are most commonly used in the recording studio: Dynamic, Condenser, and Ribbon. A dynamic microphone is work horse device, capable of reproducing loud sound sources as well as those with a powerful attack (such as guitars, kick drum, and snare drum). A condenser microphone is a more delicate device, designed to react sensitively to its sound source, offering a more defined sound on things such as drum overheads, acoustic instruments, and vocals) A ribbon microphone offers a unique tone due to the natural lack of high end frequency response that the ribbon reproduces. Ribbons have become very popular as a method to achieve a “vintage” vibe on modern, digital recordings. For more detailed information visit Wikipedia’s “Microphone” page….

Pre-Amps

A Pre-Amplifier (pre-amp) is a device that takes a low level signal from a microphone, or instrument, and boosts it to a line level signal that can be recorded. As with microphones, every pre-amp offers its own, unique tonal characteristics. There are two types of pre-amps commonly used in the recording environment: Tube and Solid State. As the name suggests, tube pre-amps utilize tube components to amplify the sound, offering a “warm” tone and a subtle distortion that is preferred in many applications. A solid state pre-amp does not make use of tube components and generally offers a cleaner, more transparent tone. Within these two types of pre-amps are countless brands and models that all have their own sonic flavor. For more detailed information, visit Wikioedia’s “Pre-Amplifier” page….

Compressor

A compressor is an audio device that effects the range between the loudest and quietest parts of a sound source (known as dynamic range) A compressor accomplishes this by lowering the volume of the sound source when it passes above the volume threshold that is set by the user. The amount of compression, and the reaction time of the device, is set by the ratio, attack, and release knobs. Just like pre-amps, compressors are also built with either solid state or tube components. Compressors can be used for a variety of applications, from subtly taming dynamics,  to extreme “pumping” that can create intriguing rhythmic effects. For more detailed information, visit Wikipedia’s “Audio Compressor” page…

Equalizer

An equalizer adjusts the balance between frequencies in an audio signal. It allows us the ability to “shape” the frequency range of a sound in order to enhance its qualities, fit it into a mix, etc. There are two main types of EQ’s used in the studio environment: Parametric and Graphic. A Parametric EQ offers a variable frequency selection on multiple frequency “bands” (ranges) and a variable “Q” (range of effected frequency). This allows us the flexibility to hone on the desired frequency and effect it accordingly. Graphic EQ’s have fixed frequency and q selection, often based on frequency “octaves” to offer a natural, musical response. For more detailed information, visit Wikipedia’s “Equalization” page…

Plug-In’s

Plug In’s are used in digital recording to emulate the function of analog equipment. While, it can be argued that software can never take the place audio moving through actual components (and I agree!) software plug-ins have continued to grow in their sonic offering and can be very useful in the modern recording environment in many situations. There are endless options when it comes to plug-ins. The market is flooded with new, innovative tools for manipulating audio. A recent development in plug in technology is what is referred to as “emulation plug-ins” These software devices are built off of algorithms developed through the testing of actual analog gear. Through this process, developers have been able to create plug-ins that embrace the tonal qualities of a specific type of gear. This is a very exciting technology that we have found very useful in Universal Audio’s, UAD Plugs. You can learn more about Plug-ins by visiting this interesting article at Delicious Audio…

Well, now you are ready to venture “Behind The Gear” at The Record Shop. Check back next week for our first installment, highlighting the Emperical Labs’ Distressor. In the meantime, feel free to drop by our Gear Page for more information on our vast array of equipment.

As always, we love to hear feedback on our articles. If this was helpful, or a complete waste of your time, let us know! We love making new friends as well. Feel free to drop by our page on Facebook and sign up for our monthly newsletter to receive valuable resources and updates on the studio. Thanks for dropping by For The Record. Catch you next week!

-Giovanni

Therecordshopnashville.com

Michael Ide, from itproportal.com ,  says that “new reports suggest that Apple may soon replace low bit-rate music tracks with upgraded, higher quality ones. This move could likely be the result of Apple’s licensing agreement with the leading record labels in the music industry. Earlier, Business Week reported that the agreement between the two sides was now on the verge of being finalised, and also that upon being fully implemented it will allow Apple to go through a user’s entire iTunes collection and mirror it”…. read entire article here

While I am in full support of Apple making the effort to maintain the sonic quality that we as Producers spend so much time perfecting, I wonder if the average consumer would go for the idea. In the eyes of the mass consumer, is a high fidelity recording worth the extra space it will take up on hard drives and Ipods? Let us know your thoughts!

Luke James from JustLetMeSing.com

Charlotte, NC (PRWEB) April 11, 2011

Luke James from Bowling Green, OH has been named the winner of JustLetMeSing.com’s worldwide singing contest. To win, Luke beat out over 600 other contestants and made it through nine rounds of elimination singing a variety of cover songs and originals. The contestant search began in July 2010 and garnered entries from 48 U.S. states and 45 countries. Contestants uploaded videos and the public was invited to vote for their favorites at JustLetMeSing.com.

Luke received 154,000 votes to edge out the bluesy runner up, Anna McReynolds from Nashville, TN. The competition also had a parody category which was won by Tim Baggett of Newport News, VA. His finale video was a comical take on Billy Joel’s “We Didn’t Start the Fire” called “We Didn’t Read the Label”.

While he was never into music while growing up, Luke finally picked up a guitar at age 18 and hasn’t stopped since. In 2009 and 2010 he made it to the Hollywood round of American Idol. After just missing the top 24 both times Luke decided to pursue a career in music and has been performing shows across the country.

Luke created his own videos, each with its own artistic flair. One of his more popular videos featured him singing Gnarls Barkley’s “Crazy” with over 30 wardrobe changes during the four minute song. Another is his original “We Fall” which showcases him playing guitar with broken strings in a suit and tennis shoes under a tree in the middle of winter.

As the winner, Luke receives the opportunity to record his own single at The Record Shop in Nashville, TN. He will also be performing on Balcony TV Nashville which is shot at The Hard Rock Café. Luke also receives a Virtual Radio Tour valued at $5,000, which exposes his music to radio stations across the country.

Season two of Just Let Me Sing will feature microsites hosted by local media partners in the U.S. and Canada. The site is integrated into Facebook and Twitter to increase the viral spread of the best videos. Anyone interested in becoming a microsite partner or contacting the artists please see below.

Contact Information:
Company: Just Let Me Sing, LLC
Web: https://www.JustLetMeSing.com

Sponsors:
CMC Promotions: https://www.CMCPromotions.com
The Record Shop: https://therecordshopnashville.com
Balcony TV: https://www.BalconyTV.com